Casino Craps: The Lingo, Vocab, and Terminology Every Player Needs

So you’ve finally heard the news, and the secret’s out!

Craps does indeed offer players just about the best odds of any casino game.

In fact, Craps is the only major table game where gamblers can place a bet that comes with a house edge of 0%.

Yes, you read that right – here and only here, it’s possible to lay wagers without any advantage going to the house! (As our more discerning readers already know, this is only true of the Pass, Don’t Pass, Come, and Don’t Come bets. And it does come with a catch.)

In order to take advantage of what this ultra-complex game has to offer, though, players have to embark upon a steep learning curve.

It’s not enough to know the rules. (Though it is certainly an important step in the process!)

It’s not even enough to have information about the best bonuses available at your fingertips.

No, no, no.

Just as Roulette has a vocabulary all its own, and just as poker fans have a truly unique way of speaking about their favorite game, the game of craps has a language that is borderline impenetrable for newcomers. And because of the uniquely social aspect of the game,

Where but here could one player claim to have seen a “a duker with an arm” and be taken remotely seriously?

If that seems like total nonsense, fear not! Here is our definitive guide to the one-of-a-kind vocabulary you’ll need in the game of craps. 

Craps Glossary

• Ace – A die that shows 1 as the outcome of a roll.
• Ace Deuce– Refers to the Any Deuce/Crap 3 bet.
• Against the Dice – Betting on Don’t Pass, or sometimes on Don’t Come.
• All the Spots We Got (alt. All the Spots and All the Dots) – A roll of
• Arm – A player who is “good” at throwing the dice. Someone lucky others rely on by following them with Pass and Come bets.
• Apron – The felt outer edges of a real-life craps table.
• Bar 12 – Rolling 12 and pushing Pass/Don’t Pass bets.
• Behind the Line– Betting behind the line refers to placing odds on pass/come bets. Not allowed on all tables, and usually not featured in live casino craps.
• Betting Right – Betting on Pass, which usually means you’re hoping for the same result as the rest of the table.
• Betting Wrong – Betting on Don’t Pass, or Against the Dice.
• Big Red – Slang for a total of 7.
• Boxcar– Slang for 12.
• Boxman– A casino employee that supervises the tables, dealers, and handles the chips/money. Boxmen also often deal with casino comp points or any disputes.
• Bowl– A container used for storing dice.
• Buffalo– Betting 5 units on every Hardways wager and Any Seven.
• Buffalo Yo – Same as Buffalo, except you bet Eleven instead of Any Seven.
• Center Field – Collective term for all the bets in the middle of the table; proposition and one-roll bets. Also called Center Bets.
• Cocked Dice – Dice that end up stuck at an angle between two results, usually against the table edge. Typically, the side that would have ended up showing without the obstacle is taken as the outcome. Sometimes, however, all bets are considered void in the round.
• Corner Red – The corner of a craps table with the Big 6 and Big 8 bets, where available.
• Crapless Craps – a specific and rare variant of craps where 2, 3, 11, and 12 all point numbers.
• Crap Out – When the shooter rolls 2, 3, or 12, and the shooter changes.
• Crap Numbers – The numbers 2, 3, or 12.
• Dice in the Middle – When the Stickman places dice on the middle of the table, it means bets are open.
• Double Odds – Taking Odds on your own bet.
• Down (Take me Down) – Phrase used to tell the dealer to cancel any current bets you have.
• Down Behind – Dealers sometimes use this term to tell a player that their Don’t Pass / Don’t come bet lost.
• Duker – A player using a lot of money for a stake; a high-roller.
• Easy Way – Rolling 4, 6, 8, or 10 without pairs.
• Eyeballs – Dice showing 2; Snake Eyes.
• Fade – Old term used in street craps, refers to betting against the shooter.
• Fever – A roll of 5, “”
• Front Line– Alternate name for the Pass Line bet.
• Garden– Collective slang term for Field bets.
• Hard (Way) – Rolling 4, 6, 8, or 10 with a pair. For example, a Hard 4 is a roll of 2+2.
• House Edge – Casino advantage; same as Edge.
• Hi-Lo– A rarely-seen one-roll bet that wins on an outcome of 2 or 12.
• Hi-Lo-Yo – Same as Hi-Lo, but also wins on 11.
• Hit a Brick – When the dice roll into a stack of chips.
• Hot Table – A table at which most players seem to be winning; the opposite of a Cold table.
• Hop – Different term for a Hardways bet.
• Inside Numbers – The numbers 5, 6, 7, and 8.
• Insurance Bet – Placing two or more bets where one wins if the other one loses. A Hedge bet.
• Juice – The commission paid to a casino on some bets, such as Take/Lay odds; Vig, Vigorish.
• Little Joe – Slang term for 4.
• Little Phoebe – Slang term for 5.
• Midnight – Another alternative name for a roll of 12.
• Natural – Rolling 7 or 11 on the Come Out roll.
• No Roll – If the dice don’t roll to the other side of the table from the shooter or roll off the table, the dealer calls a “No Roll”; an invalid roll.
• Off– Bets that are currently not active are called Off Bets
• On – Active bets.
• Outside Numbers – The numbers 4, 5, 9, and 10.
• Parlay – When a player wins a bet, then uses its stake and winnings to place the next bet.
• Place Numbers– The numbers 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10.
• Point– The value determined by the Come Out roll. The Point is used to determine the outcome of many bets in subsequent rolls.
• Press– Increasing the stake of an already placed bet is called “Pressing a Bet.” Most of the time, pressing implies that you’re doubling the previous stake.
• Proposition Bet – A type of bet that includes Hardways and Proposition bets. Typically found in the middle of the table.
• Puck – Different name for the Marker.
• Puppy Paws – Slang term for 10.
• Rail (Rack) – The part of the outer edge of a craps table where players can store chips.
• Seven Out – When the shooter rolls a 7 after the point has been established. The round ends and someone else becomes the shooter.
• Shooter– The person throwing/rolling the dice.
• Skinny McKinney (alt. Skinny Dugan) – Saying the word “7” at a craps table is considered bad luck. Hence so many slang terms for it.
• Snake Eyes – Term for rolling a 2.
• Square Pair – A pair of 4s; a hard 8.
• Stickman – The “dealer” at a craps table. Responsible for handling the game and calling the dice number.
• Toke – A Tip for croupiers/casino employees.
• Two-way – A bet split between the player and the croupiers. Usually made on one-bet wagers.
• Up Pops the Devil – A roll with an outcome of 7.
• Vigorish (Vig) – Casino commission. See Juice.
• Winner on Dark Side – Slang for a roll of 3.
• With the Dice – Playing ‘with the dice’ means you’re Betting Right, ie. Making Pass/Come bets instead of Don’t Pass/Don’t Come.
• Working Bet– A bet active for the next roll. See: On.
• World Bet– Betting on 2, 3, 7, 11, and 12 at once using 5 equal stake units.
• Wrong Bettor – A player betting “Against the Dice” – making Don’t Pass/Don’t Come. Also known as Wrong-Way Bettor.
• Yo (Yo-Leven) – Sometimes used in place of the word “” Yo is used to clearly distinguish 11 from “seven” – the two words can sound similar, especially at a loud and crowded craps table.